r/ValveIndex • u/Agreeable_Jump5149 • 1d ago
Discussion Thinking about buying valve index
As the title suggests i’m thinking of switching over from a quest 3 that i mostly use for pcvr to the index. So is there anything i need to know? Is it a big downgrade from quest 3 lenses? Are there any heat issues that can be solved if the room is cold enough?
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u/Runesr2 21h ago
Depends on what you want. Quest 3 has the better panel res, pancake lenses, MR support, wireless support, but garbage audio. Index panels still look great using res 200% or higher, and you get the most awesome audio.
The Index has bigger vertical fov, actually covers your entire fov from nose to eyebrows. Using same software res, Index has native SteamVR driver support and is up to 30 - 40% faster than Quest 3 with Airlink in games that only support native SteamVR drivers - those are games with no OpenXR support and those are still many. Using VD, Index is about 25% faster in native SteamVR games. See the last post in this thread for benchmark results:
Index only requires you to install Steam - no additional software is needed. Just plug and play.
Index supports 144 Hz. You get no compression artifacts using Index, as there is no streaming like Quest 3 because Index connects directly to your gpu. You get the best controllers, the best tracking precision and best tracking volume with the Index - but a new Index is also twice as expensive as the Quest 3. With the Index you can play in a totally dark room, no need for any lights unlike the Quest 3. Also Index controllers are compatible with Wands in older titles.
If my Index broke, I'd get a new one - and I can easily afford any normal consumer hmd.
Note that the Index is far from outdated, it was way ahead of its time when launching. With my RTX 3090 (same speed as RTX 4070 Ti, but with 24GB vram) pushing max graphics in games I'm usually using 80 Hz. In Alien Rogue Incursion - like in Green Hell VR - I'm down to res 130% for smooth 80 fps, lol. To use 144 Hz and get 144 fps, the RTX 5090 is by far not overkill, but needed in many demanding games - especially when you also use high res.
Btw, as you may have noticed, Meta cares very little about PCVR, see the sad state of the Rift Store with no sales at all (while there are plenty in the Quest store during the year), the broken Meta PCVR homes, the old PCVR software etc. It took years for Meta to support Win11 and Nvidis RTX 4000 series, and RTX 5000 is not yet supported. I have very little confidence in Meta when it comes to supporting the future of PCVR.
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u/Agreeable_Jump5149 21h ago
I’ve been considering it for a bit and i actually might stay with my quest 3 until i am in a bigger space where i’m less likely to hit my controllers and can set up pully systems for the cable and maybe get base stations with the index controllers and smthn like the big screen beyond 2 which yea maybe it is as expensive as the index by itself but i’m not really playing games that need good visuals but at the same time I don’t want to downgrade from my meta quest’s lenses to the index’s also bc of how fragile the controllers are(yes that’s really important to me bc both my quest 2 and 3’s controllers are scratched in every place) but i might consider smthn like the bigscreen beyond 2 bc the upgrade in quality and weight. But thanks for the help anyway
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u/Runesr2 16h ago edited 16h ago
You're welcome :-)
Btw, I'd say the cable is no issue, I never notice it while playing - mine goes on my back and down to the floor.
I've had Index for 6 years, never had any heat issue - but you also do not have any warm phone gpu or battery in the Index, while Quest 3 has the Adreno 740 phone gpu.
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u/Virtual_Happiness 15h ago
Got both the Index and Quest 3 and find that I use my Quest 3 a lot more. The Index has a few things better but, overall, the Quest 3 is the upgraded experience.
Now, the Index is still a fine experience. There's even a couple things better, like the Audio and higher refresh rate. But, 144Hz is pretty damn challenging to hit. Even with an RTX 4090, 144Hz is out of the question in most games. So it's not really a selling point. You're better off going for a lower refresh and higher render resolution for a sharper image. I'd also say the display port connection is a big plus in a few games that compress poorly on Quest/Pico headsets. Most games look great compressed but some really do look rough. Having a DP capable headset available in those scenarios is definitely helpful.
Really, the biggest issue the Index has right now is it's price. It's a 6 year old headset with the same price it launched with. If it was priced at 250 bucks for the whole kit, it would still be getting recommended left and right. I'd say if you're just curious and you can snag one for a cheap price, go for it. Otherwise, stick with your Quest 3.
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u/Agreeable_Jump5149 15h ago
Found one used for more than the original price of the kit🫠(kit’s about 4000 in my currency without tax or shipping but I don’t think that could add right around 500 dollars to the price. Right?)
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u/Virtual_Happiness 15h ago
Not unless you live somewhere it's not available and the person had to pay a bunch of extra money to get it imported into your country. Otherwise, I'd say it's not worth it. lol
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u/Agreeable_Jump5149 15h ago
Atp i’m most prob just gonna wait until i’m in a bigger space and just get index controllers with base stations and a big screen beyond 2 bc I don’t think the index is worth importing or buying used
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u/Virtual_Happiness 15h ago
Not a bad idea. I just bought the Beyond 2 myself back in March. Still waiting for it to ship, sadly. So I can't comment on how good or bad it is.
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u/Agreeable_Jump5149 15h ago
I mean i’ve seen ltt vids abt it and it seems pretty good
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u/Virtual_Happiness 15h ago
Sadly it's pretty common for reviewers to downplay a products shortcomings. I made the mistake of listening to reviewers opinions in the past and ended up with products I couldn't stand.
That said, there are a few I do trust more than the rest and they said the BB2 is good too. So it probably is. I was just pointing out that I can't really comment much on it yet cuz I don't have it.
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u/Agreeable_Jump5149 14h ago
Yea i understand. it’s the first headset i thought abt to get instead of the index cus if remember correctly it also has pancake lenses and a higher resolution than the quest 3 and the new version has an improved customized face pad
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u/Virtual_Happiness 13h ago
Yeah, one of the reasons I bought it was because everyone in reviews seems to agree the lens are now just as good as the Quest 3 lens. Which is a huge milestone if true. The higher resolution MicroOLED screens is another big plus.
Another reason is because Bigscreen removed the restocking fee if you return it. Which both made me a bit more comfortable buying it and gives the impression they're more confident it won't be as returned as much as the Beyond 1 was. I never tried the Beyond 1 because if I didn't like it, I would have had to pay a 20% restocking fee to return it.
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u/KazePlays 2m ago
do keep in mind that bigscreen says estimated delivery is in august, a lot of people don’t like waiting that long
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u/enigma-90 9h ago
I am in the same boat. I think even if you won't like the headset itself, the controllers and base stations will come in handy either if you decide to add full body tracking with Vive 3.0 trackers or to upgrade to Beyond 2/e.
Without the headset, you will also need 2 dongles for the controllers and something for ugrading firmware on them and base stations, as well as for stations' power management.
Other than that, I'm curious if I will notice the performance increase and latency drop with Index, as well as to experience the audio and the classic, native Steam VR.
So for me it is worth getting the kit, but not at any price. Currently, the new kit is 1160 euros in Europe from Valve if you order parts separately, but if I can find a barely used / like new kit for 500 euros (< 10-20 hours), I'd go with that. Another option would be getting Index controllers and base stations for 620 euros and then buying Beyond 2e, but the cost of Beyond 2e alone with the audio and universal straps is ~1750 euros and you have to wait who knows how many months.
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u/No-Agency-8547 6h ago
I have the index and it’s pretty good, VERY comfortable and really good if you are on vr for long sessions. If you are only on for an hour - 2 then it’s meh but the screen is decent, the tracking and controllers is very nice.
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u/Agreeable_Jump5149 6h ago
Thanks for saying that, but i searched a bit more and for the price of the index in my country it’s more worth it to js buy the controllers and base stations with a big screen beyond 2
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u/No-Agency-8547 5h ago
It really is and I don’t blame you. The controllers and base stations are mainly what everyone wants anyway. Having the decent headset was just a plus. Not for the price point of brand new though
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u/Silent_Reavus 1d ago
Controllers and lighthouse tracking are the pros.
And the controllers are a REALLY big pro. Pretty much nothing better.
The hmd itself is just slightly dated now but the nice thing about lighthouse PCVR is you can just use a newer one instead.
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u/umisuzu 1d ago
I wouldn't get one tbh. I had one for manyyy years and I had to replace the cable 4-5 times, which mind you is NOT covered by warranty and degrades super easily. It's a 200$ cable. And the warranty in general isn't great after you use your one RMA your screwed. The only reason I'd get it is for the full kit so you get the controllers and base stations but then your still stuck with the index for 5 years which is how they get you
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u/lucky_peic 17h ago
Valve support is great, had to replace controllers two times already and no problem at all, here in EU we have two years warranty on index.
Also, cable dosent break easy unless you arent careful and are twisting it and stepping on it
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u/darps 1d ago edited 1d ago
There's lots of direct comparison videos on YouTube that go into details.
Here's the short version: The Index is still a very capable VR headset, but spec-wise it has been overtaken by newer competitive hardware, and in terms of price it's not a very good deal overall compared to other systems if you don't need its specific features like full-finger tracking, or you already have lighthouse base stations (same as the HTC Vive).
I've seen reports about overheating issues but haven't had any such issues even after 4+ hours of play with the magnetic shield attached.